The last couple weeks of work have been crazy, high season is in full swing and apparently so are the idiots. The reception at a hotel is everyone's "I have a problem and please fix it" point in the hotel; the guests, the employees, the deliverers, reservations etc. However, I don't think that many people realize that there are many different departments in a hotel all which can be reached independently with out bothering the reception. In fact, for the guests there is even a 'Hotel Directory' that lists the proper numbers to dial to get you to the correct department. Even with all these well thought out devices to supposedly make the line of communication better there is still the person who calls reception and starts ordering food before I even finish my scripted and often overly helpful "Reception Josh speaking, how may I help you?" Why? This should not happen. I feel like asking the questions, "Is this the first time you have ever stayed in a Hotel?" "Did you hear me I said, THE RECEPTION, not THE 'bistro' THE 'Bar' or THE 'Breakfast room'" Most people don't even have the courtesy to say, "Oh, I am sorry I was trying to be connected to room service can you do that for me?" I once said, oh no miss, this is the reception, let me connect you to room service. In which she replied, "OH come on, your JUST a receptionist just take the order for me." I would like to find out what that woman did and then call her work and ask her to help me with something completely unrelated to her work and then when she couldn't help me I would say some melodramatic response to make her feel insignificant. This woman was probably a nice person but maybe she just has bad hotel etiquette.
Every week it seems like there is someone in the hotel that the staff avoids like the plague. When they call the reception and we see their room number come up we all go AHHH SHIT! It's 608 or "I answered last time" or "I'll buy you a drink if you answer" or my favorite, "they like you better, really they told me." When they walk in the front door we hide under the reception or in the office and the last one hidden has to help them. Just this week this over confident, stick up her ass lady was staying in 203 and every time she called it was the apparent end of her world. No hot water, too cold in the room, not soft enough pillow,(admitted, all valid complaints)but at some point dont they get tired of trying to find problems?
She had a co-worker staying in 401 and instead of dialing the simple 3+room# to connect to her co-worker. She would call reception at least 4-5 times on my shift and ask to be connected, even after I repeatedly gave her instructions on how to dial other rooms. With this type of stupidity so frequent it makes me wonder; Do I know someone that behaves this way in a hotel? If I know any 203s or 608s out there and if I did find out they acted like this would I continue to associate with this type of person? Or am I that person and I just don't realize it. Would these peoples friends and families approve of how their loved ones behave while away on a business trip. I would say probably not.
